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Central Michigan University

CMU Athletics
 1200 S. Franklin St Mount Pleasant, MI 48859
Division 1 Michigan Midwest
Public Very Large Competitive team
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Coaches

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McCall Salmon

McCall Salmon was named to head the Central Michigan softball program in June, 2019, by Zyzelewski Family Associate Vice President/Director of Athletics Michael Alford.


Salmon had major shoes to fill in taking over for the legendary Margo Jonker, who led the program for 40 years (1980-2019), becoming an iconic name in college softball coaching circles.


Salmon coached at Davenport University in Grand Rapids from 2014-19, posting a 235-63 record (a .788 winning percentage) and leading the program through a successful transition from NAIA to NCAA Division II.


In 2019, Salmon led Davenport to a 32-21 record and a second-consecutive runner-up finish in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 2019. She led the Panthers to a 35-21 finish in 2018.


Prior to the move to Division II, Davenport was the preeminent program in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference, winning four-consecutive conference regular-season and tournament titles from 2014-17, and advancing to the national tournament in each of those years. Salmon guided the Panthers to an NAIA World Series berth in 2017. She was twice named WHAC Coach of the Year.


Salmon’s Davenport teams placed a combined six players on the All-GLIAC First Team and three on the all-regional squad in their two years in the league with Salmon at the helm, and she coached five NAIA All-Americans, three player who earned the WHAC Newcomer of the Year Award, and two WHAC Players of the Year and two WHAC Pitchers of the Year.


Salmon's squads were also strong academically, posting a team grade point average of 3.40 or better over six consecutive seasons.


Salmon served as an assistant coach at Davenport from 2008-13, working with the program as it was just getting started. During her time as an assistant, the program won league regular-season titles in 2011 and in 2012, and conference tournament crowns in 2011 and in 2013.


Salmon was a first baseman/utility player at Aquinas, helping lead the Saints to three-consecutive WHAC championships from 2005-07. She earned all-conference honors three times in her career and served as a team captain during her final two seasons. She received the prestigious Helen Louise Brogger Award, which goes to Aquinas' top female graduating athlete.


She earned a Bachelor of Science degree with a major in business administration and sports management from Aquinas. Salmon and her husband Paul have two children, Colt and Kayla.

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Brittini Merchant

Former Central Michigan standout Brittini Merchant joined the Central Michigan softball coach staff as an assistant in August, 2019.


Merchant was a two-time All-Mid-American Conference selection while playing middle infield at CMU from 2008-11. She works with Chippewa hitters and outfielders.


A native of Wayland, Merchant served from 2017-19 as an assistant at Davenport under current Chippewa coach McCall Salmon. Merchant joined Salmon to second-place finishes in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in both 2018 and 2019, the school's first two seasons as an NCAA Division II program.


The pair led Davenport to an historic 2017 season which included the program's first NAIA World Series berth and a fifth-place finish.


Merchant began her coaching career as a volunteer assistant at Minnesota in 2012 before moving on to Northwestern, where she served in the same capacity. She served as an assistant at Southern Illinois Edwardsville in 2016. She also coached at Grand Rapids-based Elite Baseball and Softball from 2013-16.


Merchant was named to the All-MAC first team in 2011, her senior year, and was an all-conference second teamer and earned a spot on the league’s all-freshman squad in 2008. She earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts degree with a major in family studies and a minor in athletic coaching from CMU in 2011.

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Sara Driesenga

Sara Driesenga was named an assistant coach in the Central Michigan softball program in August, 2019, by coach McCall Salmon.


Driesenga is a native of Hudsonville who, in 2011, was named Michigan Miss Softball coming of Hudsonville High School. She leads the pitching staff and works with the hitters.


Driesenga was a standout at Michigan from 2012-16, compiling a 71-26 record with 10 saves and helping the Wolverines to six Big Ten championships, five regular-season crowns and one tournament title, and three Women’s College World Series appearances including a national runner-up finish in 2015.


Driesenga was a three-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region selection and earned All-Big Ten honors three times. She was a four-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and in 2016 was named to the Academic All-America squad. She played in 2016 for the Texas-based Scrap Yard Dawgs in the National Pro Fastpitch league.


She earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Michigan. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in psychology, and she earned her master’s in social work. She has served as a volunteer assistant coach at Eastern Michigan and has coached at various clubs and camps.

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